Lighters for gas burners



Aug. 14, 1956 A. R. WOOD 2,758,641

LIGHTERS FOR GAS BURNERS Fi led Feb. 1, 1950 1 s Sheets-Sheet 1 Au 14, 1956 A, R, WOOD 2,758,641

LIGHTERS FOR GAS BURNERS Filed Feb. 1, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 HVVENIUR.

Aug. 14, 1956 A, R W OD 2,758,641

LIGHTERS FOR GAS BURNERS Filed Feb. 1, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN V EN TOR.

United States Patent LIGHTER'S FOR 'GAS BURNERS Arthur R. Wood, Santa Cruz, Caiif.

Application February 1, 1950, Serial No. 141,770

2 Claims. (Cl. 158-115) This invention relates to gas burners and more particularly to a lighter arrangement which has for its purpose the automatic relighting of one or more burners in the event that the flame becomes extinguished accidentally.

In the poultry raising industry it has become common practice to heat brooders by means of gas burners, usually four, six or more burners to a brooder depending upon the size of the same. Accidental extinguishment of one or more of the burners may be caused by a gust of wind or by air currents set up by the wings of the chicks under the brooder when they become frightened or excited. Means must accordingly be provided for automatically and immediately relighting the burners as there would otherwise be danger of asphyxiation or damage from explosion of accumulated gas.

Chicks in the brooder stage grow fast and are exceedingly active, they are constantly on the move, picking and scratching for feed. This activity creates a dusty atmosphere, and as the burners are supplied with air from under the hood of the brooder a certain proportion of the dust gathers in the venturi passages and heads of the burners and builds up to such extent as to materially interfere with the proper operation of the same. It is accordingly necessary to remove the burners from time to time and clean them .as they would otherwise cease to function.

The object of the present invention is to provide a lighter arrangement which will automatically and immediately relight one or more of the burners if they become extinguished and further to provide a burner mounting which permits quick and ready removal and replacement of the burners for cleaning, inspection and otherwise.

The invention is shown by way of illustration .in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. l is'a bottom 'plan'view of the head which supports the main burners, the refractory plates, the pilot burners and the flashtubes.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the head partially broken away and partly in section.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged bottom view of a portion of the head, said vew showing one main burner in dotted lines and also showing the pilot burner and connected flash tubes, a portion of the'pilot burner housing is 'broken away and shown in section and a portion of the refractory plate is broken away.

Fig. 4 is a cross section taken on line IVIV of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a front view of one of the main burners.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a perspective'view of the bracket which supports the head end of the main burner.

Fig. '8 is a perspective view of the bracket which supports and secures one end of a refractory plate, and

Patented Aug. 14, 1956 ice which issuitably secured a-canopy or hood B under which the chicks vgather for shelter and heat. The head and hood may have the shape of a frustum of a cone and may be supported on the floor of abrooder house by a series o'flegs or may be suspended above the floor by an overhead rope and pulley system not shown; the particular shape of the brooder and its size may vary considerably and is not important to .the present invention, as this invention relates "to the burners whereby heat is supplied and to meansfor relighting the burners when the flame becomes extinguished accidentally.

In the present instance, four main burners are shown and are indicated .at 2, 3, 4 and '5. Each main burner is provided with apilot burner and these in turn with flash tubes; thepilot burners being indicated at 2*, 3 4 and 5 and the flash tubes 2 3 4 and 5 A gas supplying manifold having four tubes indicated at 6, 7, 8 and 9 is also supported by the head and the .main burners are supported at one end 'by these tubes and at their opposite ends 'by'brackets C, see Fig. 7, there being one bracket C for each burner. A refractory plate D is disposed in front of each main burner and these plates are permanently secured between the brackets C and a second set of "brackets E of the type .shown in Fig. 8.

Each main burner operates on the Bunsen principle, that is, each burner is provided with a venturi tube section 25 having aburner head 26 at one end and a gas and air inlet 27 at the opposite end, see Figs. .5 and 6. Dust due to the dust laden atmosphere previously referred to tends to gather in the venturi tubes and the burner heads to such extent as to materially interfere with the proper operation 'of the burners, hence they have to be removed now and then to be cleaned, and one of the features of the present invention is to provide a burner mounting or support which permits quick removal .and replacement of the "burners without disturbing the gas connections, the pilot burners, the flash tubes or any other part of the mechanism.

'To permit readyremoval and replacementof the burners a V-shaped lug such as indicated at 10 is formed 'at each end of the burner head26. Each bracket C is provided with apair of right angular bent ears 11, see Fig.

'7 and each ear has a V-shaped recess 10 formed therein for the reception of the lugs 10. It should also be noted that each bracketChas secured thereto a half section of a "housing or shield such as shown at 12 and that a complementary 'half shield section is secured to one end of each burner head '26 as indicated at 12*; the shield sections 12 and'12 when in place-enclose a pilot burner, for instance that shown at 3, see Figs. 3 and 4 and as there are four brackets C and four main burners, there willbe a complete shield or housing .for eachpilot burner. The lugs '10 and the V-shaped recesses formed in the ears '11 support the head end 26 of each main burner and the tubes 6, '7, '8 and '9 or the gas manifold forms a support for the inlet end of each main burner. The 'V-shaped recesses also perform another function, to wit, that of limiting movement inwardly of the main burners on the tubes of the manifold, thereby insuring correct positioning of the venturi tubes with relation to the gas inlet tubes ofthe manifold and also insuring correct position of the burner'heads with relation to the refractory plates against which the flames of the burners are directed. A flexible clip 14 see'Figs. 3 and 4 is also carried by each bracket C, these clips are hook shaped and are made of thin spring steel. 'They'hook over the burner heads 26 and secure them in place.

To remove a main burner itis only necessaryto release the .clip .14 and then grasp the burner .head and, pull outwardly so .that the'lugs '10 clear the recesses in the ears '11 vand the inlet end slides ofl the manifold tube. The

burner is then free and may be removed for cleaning and when cleaned the inlet end is first slipped over the end of the tube of the manifold, lugs are then aligned with the V-shaped recesses in the cars 11 and shoved into the same. The clip 14 is now applied and this completes replacement of the burner. It should be noted that removal and replacement was accomplished without disturbing any other part of the mechanism.

The brackets C serve three other functions besides that of supporting the main burners and the two halves of the shield sections surrounding the pilot burners. The first of the three additional functions is that of supporting one end of each refractory plate this being accomplished by forming a flange 16 on the bracket C, see Figs. 4 and 7. The second additional function is accomplished by forming a hook shaped finger 17 on one of the ears 1]., this finger forms a support which embraces and secures a tube 18 which feeds the pilot burner with gas. The third additional function is accomplished by securing a lug 19 to the opposite ear of the bracket C and forming a recess in the outer end of the lug to receive and support one end of a flash tube.

Before describing the operation and function of the flash tubes, it is desirable to point out that the head of the brooder is composed of an outer or main head A and an inner head R, this latter head is frusto conical in shape and thereby forms an inclined annular or conical surface upon which the major portion of the burner and lighting assembly is mounted. For instance, by referring to Figs. 3 and 4 it will be seen that the brackets C and E are secured to the inner head. Between each pair of brackets is secured a refractory plate D and by the brackets C, the main burners, the pilot burners together with their shields or housings and the flash tubes.

It was previously stated that one or more of the main burners and their cooperating pilot burners might become extinguished accidentally by a gust of wind or otherwise, and that one of the features of the present invention was to provide means for automatically relighting the same. Relighting is accomplished as follows. By referring to Figs. 5 and 6 it will be noted that the front face of the burner head 26 is provided with a series of closely spaced orifices 21 through which gas discharges to feed the flame of the burner, and that one of the orifices 21 is within the shield of the cooperating pilot burner. This orifice either relights the pilot burner or the pilot burner through this orifice relights the main burner as will later be described. It will also be noted that orifice 21 at the opposite end of the burner head is connected by means of a slot 22 with an orifice 23 formed in the end of burner head 26. Gas is constantly discharging from orifice 23 into an adjacent flash tube 2 see Fig. 3 and burns with a small flame if all burners are operating, but if the burner becomes extinguished orifice 23 will discharge gas into the flash tube and this will travel along the interior of the tube until it reaches the opposite end which is supported and extends through the shield of the pilot burner of another or adjacent main burner. If the pilot is burning it will ignite the gas discharging from the flash tube and a flash back takes place which ignites the gas issuing from orifice 23, the flash back also ignites the gas in the slot 22 and this in turn ignites the gas discharging from orifice 21 and also the gas issuing from the series of orifices formed in the head of the burners, thus a main burner may be reignited either from a flash tube or from its pilot burner, or in other words from either end of the burner head, this is important, for instance let it be assumed that all the main burners and the cooperating pilot burners become extinguished with the exception of the pilot burner shown at 2, see Fig. 1. If that should happen the main burner 2 would immediately be reignited by its pilot burner and no gas would enter the flash tube 5 as the gas issuing from orifice 23 would be burning, however, gas is discharging into the flash tubes indicated at 2', 3 and 4 and when the gas in tube 2 reaches pilot burner 2 there will be a flash back which will ignite burner 3 and its pilot burner 3*, this in turn will cause a flash back through tube 3 causing reignition of burner 4 and its pilot burner 4 and this in turn will cause a flash back through tube 4* thereby igniting burner 5 and its pilot burner 5 thus all the main burners and their cooperating burners were reignited even though no gas was delivered to the flash tube 5 and this is due to the fact that any one of the main burners may be ignited from either end, that is, either by its pilot burner or by the adjacent flash tube. There is only one condition under which reignition cannot take place and that is when all the main burners and their pilot burners become extinguished at the same time, that however, has never happened in actual practice, except when the gas is turned off accidentally or otherwise, in fact, it is seldom that more than one or two main burners become extinguished at the same time, but when it happens they are almost instantly reignited either by the pilot burners or the flash tubes.

In the drawings here presented four main burners are shown but two, three, four, five, six or more burners may be employed, however, a pilot burner must be disposed at one end of each main burner and one end of a flash tube must be disposed at the opposite end of each main burner, so that the opposite end of each flash tube may be connected with a pilot burner. By so arranging the pilot burners and the flash tubes, ducts are formed between the main burners through which gas may flow to reignite them when extinguished accidentally or otherwise.

The flash tubes seldom require cleaning, but if they do, they may be readily removed as one end of each flash tube is supported by extending into and through an opening formed in a pilot housing while the opposite end of each flash tube is supported in the notched lugs shown at 19, these lugs being provided with prongs 19*, which enter perforations in the flash tube to retain the flash tube against accidental removal from the recess in the lug.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is,

1. In a structure of the character described, a gas burner of the Bunsen type having a venturi tube with an air and gas inlet formed at one end and an elongated head at the opposite end and disposed at right angles to the venturi tube, a gas manifold having a tube extending into the inlet of the venturi and forming a detachable support for the inlet end of the burner, a bracket shaped supporting plate at the head end of the burner, a pair of cars on said bracket and each ear having a recess formed therein, a lug on each end of the burner head insertable in said recesses to form a detachable connection and support between the burner head and the bracket, a pilot burner supported by the bracket and disposed at one end of the burner head, a shield section secured to the bracket and enclosing one-half of the pilot burner and another half shield section secured to the burner and removable therewith said last named half shield section enclosing the other half of the pilot burner.

2. In a structure of the character described, a gas burner of the Bunsen type having a venturi tube with an air and gas inlet formed at one end and an elongated head at the opposite end and disposed at right angles to the venturi tube, a gas manifold having a tube extending into the inlet of the venturi and forming a detachable support for the inlet end of the burner, a bracket shaped supporting plate at the head end of the burner, a pair of ears on said bracket and each ear having a recess formed therein, a lug on each end of the burner head insertable in said recesses to form a detachable connection and support between the burner head and the bracket, a pilot burner supported by the bracket and disposed at one end of the burner head, a shield section secured to the bracket and enclosing one-half of the pilot burner, another half shield section secured to the burner and removable therewith said last named half shield section enclosing the other References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Koegle Aug. 12, 1902 Kiefer May 6, 1913 6 Andreas Aug. 24, 1915 Fry June 8, 1920 Lovekin Oct. 20, 1931 Carlsen May 10, 1932 Tinnerman Nov. 27, 1934 Harper Sept. 15, 1936 Higley Nov. 2, 1943 Haida May 25, 1948 

